Geology, coal resources and CBM potential of the Ardley Coal Zone in the Buck Lake area (Township 45-46; Range 6-7W5)

For raw data, questions and comments contact Willem Langenberg.

This paper reports on the potential for coalbed methane (CBM) production of the Ardley Coal Zone in an area comprising four townships (Township 45-46; range 6-7W5) near Buck Lake, Alberta.

The study area was chosen for its potential for locating a pilot site for enhanced CBM recovery by injecting CO₂. The study formed part of a joint Alberta Geological Survey/Alberta Research Council project to evaluate potential CO₂ sequestration sites. This area was selected for detailed analysis using criteria of maximum cumulative coal thickness, optimal depth to the coal zone (between 300 to 600 m), and proximity to sources of CO₂, using data from Richardson et al. (1988) and Hughes et al. (1999). (Figure 1: Isopach of cumulative coal in the Ardley Coal Zone and Figure 2: Location map of Buck Lake area with location of wells used and lines of cross-section.)

The Ardley Coal Zone was introduced as a stratigraphic interval by Allan (1924; see also Allan and Sanderson, 1945). More recent contributions by the Alberta Geological Survey (AGS) include resource assessment reports of this coal zone by Campbell (1967, 1972), Holter et al. (1975), Chu (1978), Richardson et al. (1988), Kalkreuth and Langenberg (2002), and Beaton et al. (2002). The regional assessment of Alberta 's CBM by AGS in the early '90s (Rottenfusser et al., 1991) includes the Ardley Coal Zone. Hughes et al. (1999) presented a regional assessment of potential CBM producibility and CO₂ sequestration capacity of the Ardley Coal Zone.

The Ardley Coal Zone forms part of the Scollard Formation and the understanding of this stratigraphic interval evolved from the work by Irish (1970). A detailed study of the upper Cretaceous and Tertiary coal-bearing strata of the Red Deer River valley, including the Ardley Coal Zone, was carried out by Gibson (1977).

The Scollard Formation is situated above the Battle Formation and below the Paskapoo Formation. These units will be summarized in the following sections.

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Funding for this study was provided in part by a consortium led by the Alberta Research Council (ARC) on sustainable development of coalbed methane, with the purpose to identify suitable sites for enhanced CBM recovery (ECBM). The project team consisted of Willem Langenberg, Cristina Pana, Desmond Wynne, Darrell Cotterill, Andrew Beaton, Eric Grunsky, Jessica Delorme and Campbell Kidston. We thank Dave Hughes for providing us with some coal picks data from the Geological Survey of Canada's National Coal Inventory.

Last modified: May 7, 2008